Hello - I have read some posts from a few years back comparing the two campuses. I am interested in hearing if UAB still has a commuter type feel to the students that attend from out of state. I would also be interested to hear any thoughts on the engineering programs of UA versus UAB. We have visited both campuses, and have yet to tour the engineering buildings at UA.
@Lorijb, in general, I think most students comparing engineering programs are comparing UAH to UA. Have you looked at UAH too?
There a few parents I’m aware of who have had students at each. @SOSConcern has a child who graduated from UAB (not sure of the major, but it may have been nursing) and another in engineering at UA. @momreads had a student at UA and another currently at UAH, although neither was in engineering.
Maybe one of them can help answer your questions more generally, however.
The engineering facilities at UA are quite impressive and well worth a visit. I would also recommend meeting with somebody from the college as I’ve found them to be very helpful in answering questions and helping a student figure out what he or she might want to study. I would imagine both UAB and UAH would do the same.
Yes @Lorijb and @LucieTheLakie we are living in N AL (Huntsville area) - and UA, UAB, and UAH even under the same ‘system’ are three very unique feeling campuses.
Key is to select school very carefully, especially if receiving 4 year scholarship money. And a great goal upfront is for the student to ‘finish UG in four’ - eight regular semesters. If student has AP/dual enrollment credits, and perhaps some opportunities to take courses some summers to keep with this goal.
UAB has the biomedical engineering program (only one in the state of AL), but UA has a large number of engineering programs for UG and the largest number of engineering UG students in the UA system (Auburn U within Alabama also has large engineering programs). UAH has extensive engineering programs (through PhD for many). Honestly the focus should be for young students/parents to consider the pros and cons of a particular school and the UG programs being considered.
DD1 went to UAB for nursing (graduated April 2016), and it is the largest nursing program in the state and has high national ranking - has education with many nursing master concentrations and two PhD tracks in nursing. With the large medical center very close to campus, UAB is a win for nursing students. DD was in a special VA training program through UAB, so she was able to hire in at the VA hospital at graduation (VA normally doesn’t hire new grads, but will with the special program).
DD2 is a senior in civil engineering at UA (will graduate May 2018). The Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering has at undergraduate:
Bachelor of Science in Architectural Engineering
Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering
Bachelor of Science in Construction Engineering
Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering
The dept may not have ABET accreditation on all of these majors under civil eng, but should be close to getting. Civil Eng is ABET accredited at UA. Both UAH and UAB have smaller civil engineering depts - I know UAH’s civil eng program is small in comparison by # of UG students. DD2 is finishing a double major with civil and architectural engineering.
DD1 loved B’ham and UAB.
DD2 loves UA and Tuscaloosa.
Neither student wanted to go to UAH (locally called “university at home”) - however if we did not have the resources to pay for room/board, UAH offered their majors even w/o the extra experiences they have at UAB and UA in their fields of study.
UAH, like UAB is pulling in more students and establishing more of a regular campus - UAB has a bit more of the traditional campus with football and band.
Another thing is students may have a general idea of engineering, but not know exactly what area they want to study. UA also has CS in their college of engineering. Rising HS junior and seniors can attend a summer one week program at UA called SITE (Student Introduction to Engineering) - not really advertised because the 3 summer sessions fill up quickly.
UAB has restored its football program and has some nice looking facilities; has a nice marching band (DD1 was in it for 2 years until nursing wouldn’t allow for junior/senior years).
UA is a flagship school. UAB and UAH have unique features on and off campus. B’ham is a vibrant city for young people.
Many students start biomedical engineering at UAB but switch out pretty quickly because their idea of what it is and what the career path is (and the difficulty level) - they just didn’t fully understand what they were looking for. I would say the majority who are scholarship students will change majors into something else and stay at UAB (another field of engineering, or if they want to study medicine, go into another UG area of study).
UAB does have a bit of a commuter vibe to it because many, many students are from Birmingham and area. The average student age at UAB is older than at UA. However, you’re more likely to find serious students at UAB - serious because many of them are paying their own way. Many even work full time. Both schools have a Greek scene, but at UAB it’s not the major, huge deal it is at UA. Basically it comes down to what you want out of your school experience. Both are excellent in their own ways.
An issue for an OOS would be that uab is more of a suitcase/commuter school.
Thank you to everyone for the information. We visited UAB today and were impressed with the honors program and several of the faculty members we met. it was a Saturday, and I must say the campus was quite. We did speak to quite a few of the blazers and they gave us a fairly candid view of what it is like for an OOS student. I think there is plenty to do to keep a student busy, however it does not seem to have that college feel you get at larger universities during off school hours. We will be visiting again for a football game in October to take another look at the campus.
I am a parent of a Freshman at UAB,. SHe is in the University Honors program and really likes that,. The 1st semester honors class is quite large (about 100), and her other two intro classes are also large, so she is finding it hard to connect with people in those classes, though she likes them.
There is a huge problem with campus life. She lives on Honors floor of the New Freshman Residence hall. I am pretty troubled by the lack of organized activities and general atmosphere in the dorms. I understand that it is hard to build a community when so many students go home every weekend , but even during the week my daughter is not having any interaction with people on her floor besides her roommate.
A big problem is that dorm room doors must be left closed. At all times. They are heavy fire-rated doors, and I verified that this was the policy with the director of the dorm. In all the other state and private schools my friends’ kids attend, there is an open door policy. Kids leave their doors open when they wish, maybe put on some music and make popcorn and people visit.
My daughter’s RA has not organized anything besides a floor meeting, although some other floors have organized things like an ice cream social or movie nights Also, the RA never acknowledged my daughter’s 18th birthday, (her 3rd day away from home, we live in Illinois). I thought that was shitty. Can’t think of a better way to say it.
The clubs are pretty lame, too. One club that my daughter attended toyed with the idea of having a Haunted House but no one organized it. My Freshman daughter would love to participate, but is too afraid to nag the leadership about it, or try to take it over herself.
In short, UAB is fine for kids who live close by , and a good bargain for education, but if things do not improve ( and she is trying to improve them) my daughter will be transferring somewhere else.
Did things get better for your daughter? Mine is also considering UAB but in touring we found there wasn’t a lively social atmosphere. We were also told the dorm doors cannot be propped open for fire code reasons. Would be very interested in how things turned out for your daughter.
The poster hasn’t been been on CC since Feb.